let me finish tonight with my growing concern that things are not working out here in washington. washington as i've said many times has no factories or even smokestacks. the only output of this city is effective government. for that to occur there must be deals, deals within party, deals across the aisle, deals between the president and the congress. because without deals, there can be no action. because only if this democratic president and this house of representatives can reach an accommodation, we are stuck right where we are today, not passing budget, not dealing with the debt, not dealing with these endless manufactured crises that

are now coming at us with such disgusting regularity. no deal on medicare/medicaid reform until the republicans pony up tax reform. boehner says no tax reform until there is reform. both sides can go on with the squared off positions as long as their political bases support them. this could be a long time, because boehner's biggest worry isn't the president, it's the tea party members of his own caucus who might just bring him down if he agrees to raise revenues. the president's biggest worry isn't boehner alone, it's the democrats who will assault him if he cuts a deal with bain they're doesn't raise revenues. well, the only question to which i do not know the answer is how in the world can boehner and the president cut a deal when they're so restricted to what they can accept? and that's "hardball" for now. thanks for being with us. "the ed show" with ed schultz starts right now. good evening, americans, and welcome to ted show from new york.

three days from austerity. john boehner is scolding the senate, while the president is out working with the folks. this is "the ed show." let's get to work. >> these cuts are wrong. they're not smart. they're not fair. >> the president lays out a plan to save thousands of jobs. >> i am more than willing to negotiate. i want to compromise. >> while boehner plays the blame game. >> we should not have to move a third bill before the senate gets off their ass and begins to do something. >> congressman chris van hollen and gene robinson weigh in tonight. a new lawsuit blows the lid on jpmorgan's toxic cover-up. eliot spitzer has the forecast for the implosion. the gop tries to resurrect jim crowe laws in an attack on the voting rights act. chris christie gets left out of cpac in favor of the republican gag reel. our panel takes on the party's backwards reinvention.

bachmann breaks her post election silence. >> i didn't get anything wrong. >> and it was worth the wait. thousands have gathered tonight in remembering the killing of trayvon martin. we'll take you inside the unanswered questions behind his shocking murder case. >> good to have you with us tonight, folks. thanks for watching. well, republicans have shifted into the final phase of their sequestration strategy -- talk tough and empty threats. >> we have moved the bill in the house twice. we should not have to move a third bill before the senate gets off their ass and begins to do something. >> ooh, strong language from a guy who is on the heels of a ten-day vacation, don't you think? i mean, boehner's got a lot of nerve to stand up there in front of the american people with a brand-new golf tan and tell the senate to get to work. maybe boehner forgot the number of days off he called for the

house this year. maybe democratic leader nancy pelosi was quick to remind him today. >> we've been gone for ten days. we come back. we'll be gone by thursday at 3:00 when we have a deadline facing us. we're practically becoming a drive-by congress. >> do you get off at 3:00 on thursday? heck of a job if you can get it. you know, it's amazing the lengths that the house republicans will go to deceive the public. boehner is once again lying about the bills that the house republicans have passed. again, let's have nancy pelosi explain the truth. >> the republican leadership says we passed bills last year. i remind them that was a different congress. that doesn't count in this congress. the republican leadership says

let the senate begin. i remind them that the constitution says that appropriations and revenue bills must begin in the house. >> what was that about the constitution? let's go over this slowly so even john boehner will understand it all. this bill behind me was passed by house republicans in may of 2012. it was designed by wisconsin congressman paul ryan. remember him? and of course it had cuts to programs like food stamps and medicaid instead of military spending. the bill's dead. it died when the 112th congress came to an end. here is another dandy that they say they passed. this was passed as part of john boehner's failed plan b fiscal cliff package. this one is also dead. and so let's recap. the republicans have exactly zero bills in this session, the 113th congress to avoid what we're facing on friday, sequestration. the house needs to introduce a bill before it can go to the senate. but john boehner is too busy saying tough guy words and blaming democrats. i think the secretary of homeland security summed it up best yesterday during a question-and-answer session. >> what impact would

sequestration, were it to happen, have on the department? >> you know, i've been in government and public service a long time, 20 years almost. i have never seen anything like this. >> no one has ever seen anything like this because it makes absolutely no sense. this is the party that runs around talking about cuts, yet they won't take them. this is obstruction for the sake of obstruction, no question about it. the only hard work john boehner is doing is pounding on his chest. >> the president has been traveling all over the country and today going down to newport news in order to use our military men and women as a prop in yet another campaign rally to support his tax hikes. >> so the people who are going to lose their job, they're just a prop. there is a good reason why the president of the united states is taking his case to the american people, because republicans, they just keep lying about everything in washington.

the president is not looking for across-the-board tax increases. >> all we're asking is that they close loopholes for the well off and the well connected, for hedge fund managers, or companies or corporate jet owners who are all doing very well and don't need these tax loopholes so we can avoid laying off workers or kicking kids off head start or reducing financial aid for college students. i don't think that's too much to ask. i do not think that is partisan. the majority of the american people agree with me. the majority of newport news agrees with me. we need to get this done. >> well, republicans can blame the president all they want. nothing can happen without action in congress. >> but the choice is up to congress. only congress has the power to pass a law that stops these damaging cuts and replaces them with smart savings and tax reform. and the second i get that bill

on my desk, i will sign it into law. but i've got to get congress to pass it. >> so are all the republicans just totally screwed up? well, you know what? actually, some republicans do get it. congressman scott rigell joined president obama in virginia today. he is a businessman, a car dealer guy, but he is worried about the cuts in his state. >> i've got to give scott rigell credit. he is one of your republican congressman who is with us here today. and that's not always healthy for a republican, being with me. but the reason he is doing it is because he knows it's important to you. and he has asked his colleagues in the house to consider closing tax loopholes instead of letting these automatic cuts go through. >> the state of virginia will be hit hard by excessive sequester cuts. 90,000 civilian military employees would be furloughed. it would be a loss of nearly $650 million in salary for virginians.

this is why the president took his message to a virginia facility where submarines are built. now, at this particular shipyard, projects like an overhaul to the uss theodore roosevelt is going to be delayed. how is that going to help the military? president obama wants to avoid this, and so do most americans, if you believe the polls. the latest polling from nbc news, "the wall street journal" shows nearly half of americans believe president obama is trying to unify the country. only 22% believe the same thing about the republicans. so john boehner can use all the swear words he wants. he can be a tough talker all he wants. but the numbers show that he is a failed leader, and he is the king of obstruction right now. in the 112th, it was all the filibusters in the senate. it's very clear in the 113th it's up to boehner to not even introduce anything that would avert the job losses that are going to be taking place after friday. i guarantee you, boehner's got a tee time 9:00 a.m. friday

morning. some of you people in media in washington why don't you go ask him what he's doing on friday? you're going to tell me a guy a tan like that that loves to shake down donors at a golf course isn't going to be on the links this weekend? he is not working for you. he is rip you off. you should the be calling your congressman tonight, telling them to get to work, to do a deal. to protect these families, these middle class families that are going to get butchered by this. these are real people's lives. well, okay, his tee time is at 9:05. get your cell phones out. i want to know what you think. tonight's question. what is more offensive, john boehner's language or john boehner's job performance? text "a" for language. text b for performance to 67622. you can always go to our blog at ed.msnbc.com. we'll bring you results later on in the show. joining me tonight, congressman chris van hollen of maryland.

he is a ranking member on the house budget committee. congressman, good to have you with us tonight. >> you too, ed. >> i just want to cut to the chase on what boehner is telling the american people. he says that they have passed two bills. that was in the 112th. legally, they don't apply right now. is that correct? >> that's exactly right, ed. it is totally false. the republicans have done absolutely nothing to replace or avoid the sequester in this new congress, nothing since january 1st. and whatever they did last year has absolutely no force of law, period. so they've done nothing, nada. >> okay. so now you have come forward with a solution on the house side to get things moving. it's to the point. it has revenue. but the republicans are saying they're done with revenue.

so what do you offer? >> well, that's right, ed. listen, today, just this evening was the third time that i asked for a simple vote on the floor of the house of representatives. let the people's house vote on a plan that would avoid the sequester, replace it with a mix of targeted cuts and revenues. so the cuts were to excessive agriculture subsidies, and the revenue was closing tax breaks for big oil companies and applying the buffett rule to people who earn more than $2 million a year so that they would pay at least 30%. if you do that, you get the same deficit reduction benefit of the sequester over a longer period of time in a smart way, and you don't lose the 750,000 american jobs that this congressional budget office, not me, the nonpartisan congressional budget office says you'll get with the sequester. >> okay. now with this attempt by the president, he is going around the country, making the plea to people that they got to get behind this, because these cuts if sequester takes place, it's going to hurt the economy. in the meantime, he is work over

the republican governors. the governors are saying, hey, this is the real deal. but boehner, you think that he is afraid, the speaker of the house afraid to bring this plan that you have up for an up-or-down vote because there might be some republicans that come over and vote yes on it? >> that's exactly right, ed, because what this plan would do is avoid all those job losses, avoid the disruption in the economy, and does it in a balanced way. and you've got a number of republicans who are starting to say you know what? this idea that we cannot close a single tax loophole in order to reduce the deficit and help prevent the sequester is nonsense. and so there seems to be a growing sense among some republicans. >> yeah. >> that they're not willing to lose 750,000 jobs in order to protect tax breaks for big oil companies or hedge fund managers or whoever it may be. >> well, they're obstructing in the house, just like they obstructed in the senate in the

112th. it's just a different -- it's a role reverse. it's almost like it's boehner's turn to pick up the gavel and stop everybody. here is virginia governor bob mcdonald. this is a great example of how republicans play this game. take a listen. >> we need to cut spending, and more than the sequester. but don't put 50% of the cuts on the u.s. military. >> oh, by the way, the u.s. military is in virginia. i mean, this is a classic comment right there. you know, he wants all these spending cuts, but don't do it in my backyard. i mean, that's where they are. they're self-serving in many regards, and this is why the country can't stand government right now, can't stand the congress. >> well, look, it's total head-spinning, ed. here is the republican line. if you cut defense spending so you have fewer people building ships and things like that, that loses jobs. >> yeah. >> and frankly, it does. but if you cut transportation spending or you cut head start programs, somehow that doesn't hurt jobs. that somehow miraculously grows the economy. we know that's not the case. what republicans want to do here is what they tried in europe and failed. >> yeah. >> they tried this cut and grow. and what they got was cut and shrink. their economies are going down.

they're in double-dip recessions. and that's the kind of medicine they want to prescribe here at home now. it won't work. it will hurt the economy. >> all right. congressman chris van hollen, good to have you with us tonight. thanks. >> likewise, thanks, ed. let's bring in pulitzer prize winning columnist for the "washington post" eugene robinson. eugene, does the hatred for president obama run so deep in the republican party that there is no deal that they'll cut with him? >> there doesn't seem to be a deal right now. and it's not just hatred for president obama as far as speaker is concerned. i think his main priority is his own precarious political position. and, look, if he were to bring to the floor of the house a proposal such as congressman van hollen's, indeed, quite a few republicans might vote for it. in fact, it might pass. but then john boehner's majority might turn on him and he might lose the speakership. so it's unclear whether the house republican majority can be led at this point.

it is clear that boehner isn't doing a very good job of leading it. >> so who wins the pr war that is taking place right now? i know that's the last thing american people want to hear. but that's all these guys care about right now. >> well, polling has been done. who will you blame if the sequester happens and the sky falls? and overwhelmingly, people say we will blame the house republicans, because they're the ones who were obstructing a deal and a resolution of this completely artificial crisis, by the way. this crisis didn't have to happen, but it is happening. look, boehner has to take the long shot bet or feels he has to take the long shot bet that the polls are wrong, and that eventually people will come to blame the president and absolve the republicans. i think that's unlikely, and the polling shows that's unlikely. >> you know, listening to the president talk today, he wants to compromise. he almost gets the feeling he would give away the farm if they give up little bit of revenue. i think he knows that they won't

do it. >> yeah, i think at this point we are the stage where this is all for public consumption, unless there are some talks going on deep, deep in the background, underground somewhere that nobody knows about. it looks like this is all preparation for what happens on friday morning after the sequester hits, and then everybody says oh, how do we fix it. >> eugene robinson, great to have you on "the ed show" tonight. thanks for being here. share your thoughts with us on twitter and ed show and on facebook. we want to know what you think. hundreds of internal e-mails show banking giant jpmorgan chase hiding bad loans from investors. the former sheriff of wall street eliot spitzer is going to weigh in on this and so much more, coming up. stay with us.

and coming up, brand-new evidence the big banks were taking us for a ride on the road to the great recession. former new york governor eliot spitzer, he knows what these guys are all about.

he'll join me next. and the supreme court of the united states is hearing a case which could turn voting rights in this country upside down. don't forget, you can listen to my radio show on sirius xm radio channel 127 monday through friday noon to 3:00. share your thoughts with us on facebook and on twitter using #edshow. we're coming right back. stay with us. welcome back to "the ed with olay, here's how. new regenerist eye and lash duo. the cream smooths the look of lids... softens the look of lines. the serum instantly thickens the look of lashes. see wow! eyes in just one week with olay. see wow! eyes in just one week [ female announcer ] some people like to pretend a flood could never happen to them. and that their homeowners insurance protects them.

[ thunder crashes ] it doesn't. stop pretending. only flood insurance covers floods. ♪ visit floodsmart.gov/pretend to learn your risk. welcome back to "the ed show." there is more troubling news from wall street. a new lawsuit accuses banking giant jpmorgan chase of hiding bad loans from investors. the belgian bank dexia bought over a billion dollars worth of mortgage-backed securities from the firm and is now accusing jpmorgan and the companies it acquired, bear stearns and washington mutual of egregious

fraud, say thanksgiving created and sold mortgage bonds backed by loans that they knew to be exceptionally bad. and there is proof. >> internal e-mails uncovered in a lawsuit against jpmorgan chase now show employees may have known about serious flaws with thousands of home loans leading up to the financial crisis. >> hundreds of e-mails as well as employee interviews all part of dexia's lawsuit offer a new look into wall street's mortgage machine. according to "the new york times," the documents filed in federal court reveal that jpmorgan ignored quality controls, sometimes ignoring them entirely in a quest for profit. and the e-mails show there was a lot of internal pressure to unload the securities. >> a 2006 bear stearns e-mail reads like something out of "glengarry glen ross."

everybody start to unload. use the sales force. use the dealer desk. get on your game. >> jpmorgan deny nice wrongdoing and is contesting the allegations in court. joining me tonight, former new york governor and former attorney general of new york, eliot spitzer. mr. spitzer, good to have you with us. >> ed, thank you for inviting me. >> this has got to be a clear indication of fraud as i see it. these are damaging e-mails. >> absolutely. remember, the defense of the banks has traditionally been we got it wrong, but we didn't lie. we made a mistake, but we didn't deceive. the beauty of e-mails is they give you a contemporaneous vision and understanding of what people knew. these e-mails make it very clear. and there are equally damning e-mails related to many other banks that at the time morgan,

wamu, bear stearns securitized the debt, they knew the mortgages were bad. that is the essence of this, and it completely debunks their defense. >> where is the justice department? >> absent, missing in action. look, you and i think have the same frustration. we thought with a president obama, with the justice department unlike what we saw in the bush administration that embraced the banks and believed in self-regulation, believed in the mythology, wall street can't do anything wrong we thought these guys would step up to the plate and prosecute and be aggressive. it hasn't happened. lanny breuer, head of the criminal justice division, major, major disappointment. i'm glad he is leaving. he has been an abject failure. >> if they did any investigating at all, how can they not find these e-mails? that. >> is the fascinating question there are a set of documents produce bade company called clayton that was a due diligence company that years ago was hired

by the banks to go in and say are these mortgages good? and as you said in the top of the segment, they found out the mortgages were bad. so what did the banks do with that information? suppressed it. anybody who had done a good investigation would have seen this, charged the banks, charged individuals, and said let's finally unravel this daisy chain that is killing our economy. >> this is the dot that needs to be connected for the american people. this drove us right damn near off the cliff. and it's cost the american taxpayers a boatload of money because we've had to subsidize what, a stimulus package that has put us further in debt in this country. and how can these folks get off scot-free? >> it is an outrage. the anger you and i feel should be felt by everybody. but it goes beyond that. the cost of the cataclysm has been estimated at $13 trillion. i'm sick and tired of hearing the banks say we repaid the t.a.r.p. money, as if that was the entire magnitude of what we owed them, or they owed us. here is the other figure. every year, ed, we subsidize these too big to fail institutions by $83 billion because we guarantee them, their borrowing costs go down. that's not my number. that's bloomberg. it's a crazy amount of money that they benefit from our subsidy. >> and the remedy is congressional action, laws,

oversight, regulation. >> but it's prosecution. we had the laws. >> start with the prosecution, then we go to the law. >> we had enough laws. we had the laws, we didn't have prosecutors willing to do what is hard, which is to look -- jamie dimon had the best pr in the world. his bank time and time again fraud, misbehavior, corruption from libor to the london whale to securitizing bad debt. the mythology of jamie dimon should be ripped apart. people should know the truth about jpmorgan. >> tonight we learn the banking industry recorded its highest earnings since before the financial crisis. wall street bonuses are also up, yet the middle class still feeling the pinch in this country in a big, big way. what is the solution? >> well, look, the solution is that since 1975, median family income has been flat. wages have been flat because we have permitted the tax burden to shift to the middle class and the poor, and we have exempted the wealthy. we have broken down union rules that permitted unions to

organize. we have also had technology and globalization, two things we can't repeal and shouldn't repeal. but we need social policies that begin to help the middle class, which means changes in tax policy, rules relating to organization. >> governor spitzer, good to have you with us on "the ed show" tonight. come back. >> i. >> thank you so much. up next, the south wants the federal government to stop meddling in their elections. the whole country needs to pay very close attention to the supreme court of the united states tomorrow. and new jersey governor chris christie was not invited to the biggest republican gathering of the year. coming up, i'll tell you why republicans are pushing him aside, and the panel will weigh. in stay tuned. we're coming right back.

despite johnson's historic civil rights act of 1964 that put an end to segregation, the web of local laws continued to deny black americans the right to vote. >> about 192 negroes were registered on a average a month in the state of mississippi. all over the state, 192 a month. now on the basis of this rate of registration, it would take exactly 135 years for half of the negroes eligible to vote in mississippi to become registered. >> welcome back to "the ed show." you have to wonder if we're going forwards or backwards. that of course was dr. martin luther king back in 1965,

pushing president johnson for a voting rights bill because of the jim crowe laws in the south. unfortunately now old jim crowe is trying to make a comeback. under section 5 of the voting rights act, the states shown on this map need permission from the federal government to make changes to voting regulations. for instance, let's take the state of mississippi, as dr. king was talking about. if mississippi wants a voter id law, they have currently have to prove that it will not discriminate against minorities. tomorrow in front of the united states supreme court, attorneys for shelby county, alabama, will say that special protection for minorities is outdated. they want to change it. that's in spite of the fact that the voting rights act was reauthorized by president george w. bush back in 2006. frankel liss, an alabama attorney says registration of

white minority voters in shelby county, alabama, has been the same for a decade. his quote was the south has changed. it's not the same as it was in 1964. the whole country has changed. we are a dynamic society, not just in alabama, but everywhere. wait a minute, not everywhere. in florida last year, the justice department had to step in time and time again to stop governor rick scott from purging minority voters from rural voting roles and eliminating early voting. thankfully, attorney general eric holder knows minority voting suppression is real. >> it is the position of this department of justice and this attorney general that we will vigorously defend and vigorously use section 5. the need for it is still there. >> make no mistake, this is all about politics. the washington attorney for shelby county, alabama, was the same attorney who represented republicans in ohio and florida who were trying to reduce early voting in this last section

cycle. the fact is republicans can't win minority votes with their ideas. they just keep getting busted when they try to suppress minority votes by breaking the rules so now they're trying to eliminate the rules all together. as we saw in states like ohio and pennsylvania last year, the suppression efforts goes far beyond the south. the bottom line is rolling back protections for minority voters in these states isn't the answer. we need to expand those protections to cover the entire map and kill jim crowe once and for all. after losing the 2012 election in a big way, the republicans build on their winning strategy with the party's biggest losers. our panel on chris christie's lost cpac invitation. michele bachmann opens up

about campaign memories. >> i didn't get anything wrong. >> selective memories. unanswered questions still plague the trayvon martin case. we'll look back on the murder, as thousands pay tribute to the slain teen.

after considerable discussion and research, i have decided to participate in medicaid expansion under the affordable care act. >> welcome back to "the ed show." obviously, new jersey governor chris christie today infuriating the republican establishment. christie said medicaid expansion will provide health care for his state's poorest citizens and save money in the long run. holy smokes, how do you get away with that in the republican party? well, it's a common sense move, and it should please the white house. but moves like this could be why christie wasn't invited to cpac, the biggest republican gathering of the year. it's an odd snub, considering christie is a very popular conservative. he is a republican governor in a blue state with a 74% approval

rating. how the heck do you beat that? plus, christie is really a typical republican. he is pro-life, he has taken on unions, he has given tax cuts to the wealthiest residents in new jersey, he has cut government jobs and each vetoed a minimum wage increase. that resume won't get him invited? christie is also a 2016 presidential favorite among many. but somehow he didn't make the cut for the republican super bowl. instead, cpac will feature winners like mitt romney, sarah palin, and allen west. the reason these people made the cut is because they would never say things like this. >> i cannot thank the president enough for his personal concern and compassion for our state and for the people of our state. >> so governor christie wasn't invited to cpac because he works with the president of the united states to help his citizens in new jersey. he did it after hurricane sandy, and he did it again today by expanding medicaid help in his state. this is a shining example of the blind hate republicans have for

president obama. they choose to ditch a potential presidential nominee because he works with the white house? moderate republicans across america, beware. your party has definitely changed. for now let's turn to salon editor at large joan walsh. also with us tonight "washington post" columnist e.j. dionne, and republican strategist liz mair. great to have all of you with us tonight. liz, chris christie, a popular republican. i just gave you his short resume right there. why wouldn't they invite him to cpac? doesn't he have anything to offer? >> i think that he does, but i think it's worth noting that cpac is getting itself in a lot of trouble this year for what appears to be kind of an exclusionary policy regarding a number of people who are within the republican tent, whether that is chris christie there has

been some controversy surrounding their inclusion of gay conservative groups. that is something that has occurred for them in the past. and i think the criticism that you're hearing from some quarters is that unfortunately cpac seems to be cutting out a lot of the people who potentially present a more modern and more appealing version of conservatism that is a little bit broader based, maybe a little more inclusive. >> its tea party soiree. >> actually, let me distinguish that a little bit. first of all, i think tea party, the meaning of that depends on where you're looking. but there are actually some very inclusive members of the tea party who are very socially liberal and fiscally conservative. >> liz, it's about obama. >> it's not when you're look at the gay conservative groups. i think this is a problem that goes -- i think you're actually giving cpac a little bit of a pass here by letting them get off with some excuse. it's beyond that. >> is this snub about resentment and hate towards president obama. what is it? >> i think there is definitely some of, that ed, but, you know, somebody from cpac told the national view that they didn't invite christie because he has a limited future in the republican party. and then you look at allen west

and sarah palin and mitt romney and think about their future in national politics. they don't have one. so, you know, it shows i think the extent to which conservatism has become a cult, not a vibrant political movement that has conversations and disagreements with itself where somebody like chris christie with that unbelievable voting record. >> sure. >> that you ticked off can come and he can agree with them frankly on most things and disagree about an issue or two, and everybody can have a debate and talk about it. instead, it's much more about getting rid of the heretics and also snubbing anyone who has anything to do with president obama. >> yeah, i agree with, that joan, yeah. >> e.j., does this show the republicans are just more concerned with ideology than winning races? if there is a guy who could bring in people from the center,

it would be christie. all of those speakers that cpac is going to, none of them are in the center. >> well, i think the core of this cpac conference is going to be the edsel. i mean, this is a really backward-looking meeting when you look at the guests they have. and i think chris christie will wear their scorn as a badge of honor, if i'm permitted to paraphrase dan quayle on your show. chris christie is a very smart politician. he knows that barack obama carried new jersey by 17 points the last time. he is up for reelection this fall. he knew he was going to be judged by how he handled hurricane sandy, so he worked with the president because that was more important to him than republicans not liking barack obama. and on the medicaid thing, that is a very good deal for states, particularly for hospitals in the state. and he just took it. this is a politician who knows he can't go anywhere unless he gets re-elected this year. >> sure. >> and he is making a heck of a play for democrats. >> liz, you gave us your thoughts on cpac. what about christie? does this help him in the long run? >> you know, i think that christie is probably pretty safe to be reelected this year. so i'm not sure that this necessarily figures into the

calculus too much. >> i'm talking about being a presidential candidate. does this exclude him from possibly being on the national ticket to run for president? >> no, i don't think it excludes him. john mccain was never a big fan of cpac and certainly didn't maintain much of a presence there. i'm not sure he spoke there in 2008 even if i recall correctly he did not. and i think that may have been a conscious choice on his part. i don't think it necessarily harms christie. you know, ultimately, i think that being in a position to go and speak to people at cpac does give you the opportunity to have a wider audience for your views and to make sure that conservatives are hearing it. and i think that's beneficial for conservatives. i think as joan said, it would be helpful at this point where i think there is a lot of concern about modernization within the conservative movement if we had as many voices as possible within that gathering. but at the end of the day, i don't think it hurts christie per se. >> very narrow right now. cpac has chosen that they will throw loyalists to the party right outside. it's now to me there is

certainly two parties here. they're just by banner under one umbrella. let's go to sequestration. joan walsh, the president making a heck of a pitch. and of course you've got john boehner telling the senate to go back to work, and he is relying on the two bills they passed in the last session of congress. where are we? who wins? who loses? >> we're in big trouble. you know, i feel like watching hurricane sandy approach last year, ed, and i could tell my daughter to evacuate in new york and my family got out. but you can't -- you really have no way to prepare for this. kids kicked out of head start. 750,000 jobs lost. i really don't see a whole lot of hope for a compromise. >> e.j. dionne, has the republican from virginia scott rigell ended his career with republicans now that he was traveling with the president of the united states today to talk about fixing a financial problem in this country? >> i actually don't think so.

i think to go back a bit to our earlier conversation, as liz suggested, there are two kinds of conservative right now. there are conservatives who say there is nothing wrong but the packaging and are really taking this hard line on the sequester, and there are conservatives saying hey, wait a minute, we got to rethink some stuff. we lost five of the last six elections. and i think people like the congressman from virginia are going to look very good come november of 2014, because this sequester is just stupid. we're taking a whole lot of money out of the economy at a moment when we should be goosing the recovery, not pulling it back. and i think a lot of republicans in their heart of hearts know that, at least republicans in the electorate, if not in the house of representatives. >> all right, joan walsh, e.j. dionne, and liz mair, great to have you on "the ed show" tonight. appreciate your time. still ahead, tonight marks a one year since a controversial shooting which touched off a national protest. it also sparked a debate about self-defense. we'll tackle the stand-your-ground laws just

ahead. stay with us.

welcome back to "the ed show." despite a vicious smear campaign by his former friends, and an unprecedented filibuster, the senate voted 58-41 this afternoon to confirm former nebraska senator chuck hagel as president obama's choice for secretary of defense. and that's a big talker tonight on the social media. on facebook, cindy shannon writes best wishes and about time. what a load of crap to put him through. greg white calls hagel a rarity, a republican with common sense, compassion, courage of his convictions, and a brain. and kenneth says hagel is the right man to bring the boys home. afghanistan, close it down. you can go to our facebook page right new and you can join in on the conversation. and don't forget to like the ed show when you're there. we appreciate that. here she comes. congresswoman michele bachmann of minnesota gives herself high marks on her presidential run. well, of course we're going to

do a fact check on that. stay with us. we're right back.

let's all say happy birthday to elvis presley today. happy birthday! >> welcome back to "the ed show." that was congresswoman michele bachmann of minnesota wishing elvis presley happy birthday on the anniversary of his death. congresswoman bachmann has now resurfaced after barely holding on to her seat in the last election in minnesota. in an interview with patrick henry college, she described her performance as a presidential candidate. >> and i was very proud of the fact that i didn't get anything wrong that i said during the course of the debates. i didn't get anything wrong, and that's a huge arena. >> well, it is. and here are just a few things that congresswoman michele bachmann got wrong during the republican primary debates. she said president obama canceled the keystone pipeline. simply not true. she didn't seem to know libya is

in africa. she denied ever saying that hpv vaccine was dangerous, but she had said it was potentially dangerous in a previous debate. she said president obama had agreed to just $21 billion in budget cuts when the real number was $917 billion over ten years. she repeated a popular republican lie about obama care taking $500 billion from medicare recipients. here is another claim she made about obama care. >> the cbo, the congressional budget office has said that obama care will kill 800,000 jobs. what could the president be thinking by passing a bill like this knowing full well it will kill 800,000 jobs? >> well, the congressional budget office never said obama care would kill jobs. one of bachmann's more interesting mistakes happened outside the debate stage. >> just like john wayne was from waterloo, iowa, that's the kind

of spirit that i have too. >> spirit. john wayne wasn't born in waterloo, iowa. it was john wayne gacy, the serial killer. congresswoman michele bachmann, congratulations on a stellar presidential run. please do it again. tonight in our survey, i asked you what is more offensive, john boehner's language, or john boehner's job performance. 3% of you say boehner's language. 97% of you say his performance. coming up, it has been one year since the shooting death of trayvon martin. we'll talk about what has changed and what hasn't when it comes to guns and stand-your-ground laws. stay with us. and in the big finish tonight, one year ago tonight, trayvon martin was shot and killed in central florida, sparking a national debate about self-defense and stand-your-ground laws.

tonight trayvon's parents are making the anniversary at the vigil in -- marking the anniversary at the vigil in union square park here in new york city. tonight's vigil is just one of a dozen of million hoodie marches held over the past year mourning trayvon's death and demanding change. trayvon's parents became political activists after their son's death because police refused to arrest the gunman right away under florida's stand-your-ground statute.

neighborhood watch volunteer george zimmerman claims trayvon attacked him so he shot trayvon in self-defense. the police eventually arrested zimmerman and released these pictures nine months after trayvon's death. the pictures show cuts on zimmerman's face and on the back of his head the night of the shooting. but there are also recordings of zimmerman before the shooting telling police trayvon looked like he was up to no good, or on drugs or something. trayvon was not armed and was killed just 70 feet away from his stepmother's town house. a 911 dispatcher asked zimmerman to wait until police arrived before approaching trayvon, and prosecutors claim zimmerman's profiled martin. zimmerman has pleaded not guilty to second-degree murder charges. >> as a parent i just don't quite understand how someone can be a make-believe cop, pursue my

son, who had every right to be in that neighborhood, chase him, get in a confrontation with him, shoot and hill him, and not be arrested. something has to be done. thinking summer a jury will decide whether zimmerman acted in self-defense. in the meantime, trayvon's parents marked their son's birthday with a peace walk led by actor jamie foxx. trayvon would have been 18 years old this month. we should note zimmerman, george zimmerman has sued nbcuniversal for defamation, and the company has strongly denied his allegations. joining me tonight, trayvon martin attorney jasmine rand. jasmine, good to have you with us this evening. >> thank you for having me. >> what are trayvon's parents asking lawmakers to do? >> trayvon's parents are asking lawmakers to reexamine the stand-your-ground law. what is happening now is these laws have been enacted all over